Alis Super Market Vs Joint Commissioner of State Tax (Appeals) (Kerala High Court)
Summary: The Kerala High Court allowed the writ petition filed by Alis Super Market against the appellate authority’s order dismissing its GST appeal as time-barred. The petitioner had challenged the order passed under section 107 of the CGST/SGST Acts and contended that it was entitled to the benefit of Notification No. 53/2023-Central Tax dated 02.11.2023, which permitted specified delayed appeals subject to prescribed conditions, including payment of an additional 2.5% of the disputed tax over and above the mandatory 10% pre-deposit. Although the petitioner had initially filed the appeal without remitting the additional 2.5%, it subsequently paid the amount. The High Court noted that the appellate authority had not considered whether the petitioner was entitled to the benefit of the notification and held that an opportunity should have been given to the petitioner to avail the benefit.
The Court also noted that, in an earlier judgment, it had found failure to pay the additional 2.5% to be a curable defect. Accordingly, the High Court quashed the impugned appellate order and restored the appeal to the files of the appellate authority. The appellate authority was directed to pass fresh orders after ascertaining whether the petitioner could be extended the benefit of Notification No. 53/2023-Central Tax and after taking note of the observations contained in the present judgment. The judgment therefore does not finally decide the petitioner’s entitlement to the notification; instead, it requires the appellate authority to reconsider that entitlement after providing the appropriate opportunity.
